A massive disparity over out of control dog offences in Courier Country has been described as “ridiculous”.
North East Scotland Conservative MSP Liam Kerr said the figures should be much closer together and will be taking up the matter with the justice secretary.
He was speaking after Police Scotland released figures under freedom of information on recorded crimes for failing to keep dogs under proper control.
However, the figures have also exposed widespread confusion over recording procedures and the statistics handed out, with the police themselves admitting they might not provide a true extent of the problem.
In 2017 there were 739 offences across Scotland which included just one in Angus, two in Dundee, nine in Perth and Kinross and 60 in Fife.
Mr Kerr said: “There seems to be a massive disparity in the recording of offences surrounding dogs.
“We see one offence in Angus, two in Dundee and nine in Perth – compared to 66 in Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire.
“We know there are many more instances of dogs being left off the lead in Tayside, with the public being at risk.
“It is ridiculous to suggest Aberdeen or Fife have fewer law-abiding dog owners than Dundee. These figures should be much closer together.
“If it’s the case that Police Scotland is not resourced enough to investigate potential offending, I will ask the SNP justice secretary to explain why, and soon.”
Fife was fourth in table with 60 offences just behind 62 in South Lanarkshire; 75 in North Lanarkshire; and 96 in Glasgow.
North East Liberal Democrat MSP Mike Rumbles said: “There will always be some regional variations but in this instance the differences are night and day.
“In Aberdeenshire and Fife almost 100 cases of out of control dogs were reported and lodged last year, for example, while in Dundee and Angus only three cases where taken to that same level.”
Scottish SPCA Chief Superintendent Mike Flynn suggested the disparity might be down to current legislation.
He said: “There are currently two pieces of legislation that can be used to tackle dangerous or out of control dogs.
“The first, the Dangerous Dogs Act, which is breed specific, is currently undergoing consultation at Westminster.
“This legislation allows the police to take action when a dog attacks a person or another animal in a public area.
“The second piece of legislation is the Control of Dogs (Scotland) Act which provides the local authority the power to issue dog control notices in regards to dogs that are aggressive and/or out of control in both public and private spaces.
“This act is not breed specific and allows action to be taken before an attack has taken place.
“We believe any dog is capable of behaving in a dangerous or aggressive manner if it is allowed or encouraged to do so by the owner.
“Sadly, a small minority of dog owners let down the majority of responsible pet owners.
“If there are any concerns about an aggressive or out of control dog, you should contact your local authority in the first instance.”
Police Scotland said the figures might not provide a true extent of the problem as “other incidents could fall under different crime codes or be dealt with by the local authority”.
In this instance, ‘crimes recorded’ would refer to ‘management’ stats – before matters reach the courts or are altered by the procurator fiscal.
It is also possible that there could be separate crime categories relating more specifically to the owner or to ‘animals’ rather than dogs.
